MUC done right!

  • Thread starter Budget Player Cadet
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
I need help. I have been trying for ages to build a mono-blue control deck, or just ANYTHING that can hold up in Vintage.
I'll start with what I know is going in.

4x Counterspell
4x Mishra's Factory
4x Force of Will
4x Mutavault.

P.S. From those 16 cards, guess which four i have?
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Mono-blue in Vintage? You're gonna need Mana Drains... maybe Psionic Blasts as removal, Upheaval....
 
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rokapoke

Guest
I don't know so much about Vintage, but I have a mono-blue control deck that I've had great success with over the past few years. I ran it against Mooseman a few months ago on the forums, but I don't think he's a big fan. I'll post a decklist when I get home tonight, so you can at least see one build that works (though I haven't faced big-time opposition, like P9 decks or anything like that).
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
I have no clue what in god's name Mana Drain is. I guess I'll go look it up on Gatherer. I have a few nice cards that i'm not to sure about (Treachery, Rewind, Mana Short, Control Magic). I tried to use the creature-stealers before, and it was a flop. What do I steal? The dark confident? That's suicidal! They killed me with lands. That sucked.
Oh. That's Mana Drain. Yeah, I see what you mean. I'm still on a budget here, and force of will and the factory are pushing the envelope. Mana drain, last time i checked, cost how much? 125$!! I can't get that. It's well out of my range. Plus, it's basically begging for fat mana burn.
The psionic blasts are something I can get, precisely like Upheaval, that's more in my price range. When I think about it, Upheaval is a card that I've been wanting for quite a while now.
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Unfortunately, with Vintage and mono-blue control, you're gonna have to go for the big guns if you want to be competitive.

So you either pony up or save or get a Vintage deck that's more in line with your budget or cards you can get.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
What's the difference between vintage and Legacy? I have no clue whatsoever, the only difference is, I know where there's a vintage tournament near me, but that's not the case with Legacy.
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Legacy has a different banned list. It used to be that any of the cards on the Vintage Restricted List were banned in Legacy, but they diverged a couple of years ago.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
So the power level is lower? That would be perfect for me.
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Well, not really. They're now different environments but because you can still use almost any card ever printed, they're probably the same power-level wise. Just different decks are dominant.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
Yeah, and my Tinker-based Skullclamp Affinity doesn't work there at all. :(
 
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rokapoke

Guest
This deck is designed to deny my opponent anything (s)he desires. The lock comes down hard if you can get the Stronghold Biologist and Stronghold Machinist out with the Arcane Laboratory.

And yes, my friends hate this deck.


Artifacts:
2x Icy Manipulator
2x Razormane Masticore (not necessary, but I find it fits well)

Spells:
2x Eyes of the Watcher (lots of instants here)

4x Counterspell (an absolute staple)
2x Last Word
1x Rewind

2x Boomerang
2x Regress
2x Repulse

2x Arcane Laboratory
2x Charisma (great with Tim!)

4x Accumulated Knowledge

Creatures:
2x Stronghold Biologist
2x Stronghold Machinist

3x Prodigal Sorceror
3x Thornwind Faeries

2x Arcanis the Omnipotent (an absolute bomb if I can confidently cast him -- the card draw is a ridiculous help)

Land:
21x Island


39 spells, 21 land

I know that the first thing anybody will say is "Put more land in!" To be honest, the original build had 60 because when I started with Revised, every deck could be 40/20 no problem. That being said, I open myself to critiques and such.
 
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BigBlue

Guest
I personally like a bit more bounce mingled w/ counters...

I live in an area where no one has much in terms of P9... so I never had to compete against it...

If you do have to contend with it - you'll be in trouble.

I don't think you "need" to have them, but your deck is weaker without the cheap stuff.

Here are some things to keep in mind if you're annoying Mono-Blue Deck:

You play your turn during your opponents turn - their End-Step in particular. If you didn't have to counter anything then it's your chance to do something. Everything you do wants to be at Instant Speed. Also, Counters and Bounce is annoying - but isn't a victory condition in and of itself. The trouble is - here's where synergy seems to end...

I haven't got time right now to give a complete rundown on a deck...

Countermagic, Bounce, and Control are your friend. It's ok to let them play a spell once in a while - as long as you have a way to deal with it.

I personally think your land creatures are a waste of time... but that's just me.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
No way! They are absolutely necessary. Everyone else there is packing forces and crap like that, and because it's impossible to cast a creature, I always get killed by land.
 

Oversoul

The Tentacled One
Spiderman said:
Well, not really. They're now different environments but because you can still use almost any card ever printed, they're probably the same power-level wise. Just different decks are dominant.
I'd say Legacy is on a significantly lower power level. If there were a large tournament with half of the players using Vintage decks and the other half using Legacy decks, the top 8 would come down entirely to Vintage players. It is true that they're different environments and different types of decks dominate, but probably no Legacy deck can reliably take on any first tier Vintage deck.
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
So you think BPC should compete in Legacy tournaments, given his decks and success (or failure) rate in Vintage?
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
No way! You know, My current deck is dead! I used to play with a deck...
1x Treatchery
1x Psionic Blast
4x Counterspell
4x Rewind
1x Last Word
1x Arcanis
1x Deep-sea Kraken
3x Vescerid Deepwalker
2x Zephid's Embrace
3x Horseshoe Crab
3x Psionic Gift
2x Draining Whelk
...
It had a few more lousy spells and creatures, but nothing really good in it. And that was the best I could do with my cards! It was harsh to get killed all the time. So Legacy is out of the Question. I was just hoping for a few tips.
 
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BigBlue

Guest
If you can't compete in the format - why don't you switch to standard where it'll be easier to get cards?

Or, just play casually and enjoy yourself rather than going through the headaches of tournaments where you'll always be outspent?

Richard Garfield never in his wildest dreams imagined the money which would be spent on "mana clash" which is why he created broken rares. He figured most players would only own a starter or two plus some boosters to make decent - not broken - decks.

There will always be people who have more money to spend on your hobby - whatever it is. You say you're 13, let go of your anger towards the more foolish.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
Yeah, I just go there for fun. But I still wish that I had a playable deck... Standard is out of the question. I can't buy packs.
 
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Budget Player Cadet

Guest
Yeah, oops. Well, most of that money goes into entrance money to get into... yep. the vintage tournaments! The rest goes to lunch money.
 
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